Mountain View Voice

Burglar surprises napping resident

The Mountain View Police Department has released a sketch of a burglary suspect who surprised a napping resident on Thursday. The break-in comes in the wake of a spike in local burglaries.

A Voice analysis of local burglary reports revealed a sharp increase from January through April 2013 as compared to the same time period in recent years.

According to police, a resident of a home in the 1000 block of Bryant Avenue, near Mountain View High School, was napping around 6:45 p.m. on May 30, when the doorbell rang. The resident ignored the doorbell and went back to sleep, but was awakened shortly thereafter by an intruder in his bedroom.

When the intruder saw the resident in his bed, he fled, taking the resident's wallet and cell phone with him. A silver sedan, which had been parked in front of the residence, might have been the getaway car.

"As has been mentioned recently, Mountain View has experienced a significant increase in residential burglaries in recent times," according to police. "This phenomenon is not unique to Mountain View as evidenced by similar trends in surrounding cities in our area."

Residents are encouraged to remain diligent, to always keep all doors and windows locked and secured, police said. Investigators believe the burglar may have entered the house through such a door.

Police said in a press release that burglars often ring the doorbell of a home to see if anyone is home before they decide to try to break in. "This is why it is important to let them know you are home," according to the release.

The suspect pictured in the sketch is described as a black male — somewhere between the ages of 15 and 22, between 5-feet-10-inches and 6-feet tall, thin, with short hair. He was wearing a dark brown sweater and blue jeans at the time of the crime.

Anyone with information about this particular case, or any other burglary or suspected break-in, can call the MVPD at 903-6344.